Sterilizing and storage cabinet



Feb. 7, 1939.

M. SELIG STERILIZING AND STORAGE CABINET Filed Allg. 30, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet l M. SELIG Feb. 7, 1939.

STERILIZTNG AND STORAGE CABINET Filed Aug. 50, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Feb. 7, 1939 UNITED STATES STERILIZHNG AND STORAGE CABINET Milton Selig, Philadelphia, Pa., assigner to rIlie Fischman Company, a corporation of Delaware Application August 30, 1938, Serial No. 227,562

22 Claims.

My invention relates to cabinets for storing and sterilizing articles of any kind, particularly articles of tableware.

At soda fountains and in bars, restaurants and the like, where eating and drinking utensils are used, washed and more or less promptly re-used by different members of the public, it is desirable, and in many places required by local ordinance, that the utensils be adequately sterilized between uses. At the present time, attempts to comply with this requirement generally take the form of subjecting the utensils to the action of boiling water, steam or chemical disinfectant in the kitchen or in some room where the operation is not under observation by the customer, who can therefore only assume or hope that the articles of tableware set before him have been properly sterilized in accordance with the local health or sanitary regulations or in conformity with the general canons of cleanliness and good taste.

I have discovered that there is considerable consumer appeal in performing the sterilizing operation directly under the observation of the customer, but so far as I am aware, prior to my present invention there has been no entirely satisfactory sterilizing equipment provided for use in the presence of the customer. A principal object of this invention is therefore the provision of sterilizing means embodied in a piece of apparatus which is well adapted to be operated conveniently in full sight of the customer.

In the usual present practice, articles of tableware are moved from the kitchen or other room where the sterilizing operation is supposed to be performed to the soda fountain, bar or the like, in racks or boxes from which they are picked by employes of the establishment and set before the customers. That is to say, these racks or boxes constitute storage receptacles for beverage glasses, spoons, etc., and the customer is expected to believe not only that these glasses and the like have been properly sterilized before the boxful is brought in where he can see it, but also that the articles in the box remain uncontaminated during the time which elapses before they are set before him. In some cases glasses are lmerely rinsed with cold water at the bar between servings and left in the open air ready for re-use.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a receptacle in which articles of tableware are stored and simultaneously sterilized, and a related object consists in designing the receptacle and the sterilizing means so that the whole device is conveniently adapted to be posi- .ztioned and operated in full view of the customer,

(Cl. Z50-52) who thus sees his beverage glasses, etc., being continuously subjected to sterilizing influences up to the moment it is taken from storage and placed before him.

Other objects of the invention include the pro- `5 vision of cabinet means for accomplishing the foregoing purposes which requires a definite sequence of operation steps, so that articles cannot be removed from it except in substantially the order in which they were placed in it, so that no -10 article can be under-sterilized; which is foolproof; which will plainly indicate by some sensible signal or the like the fact that a sterilizin-g operation is being performed; which will operate in a unique yet easily understood manner so that 1,5 the fact of sterilization cannot be doubted by `any customer who takes the trouble to notice the equipment; which will be rugged and durable under severe conditions of use and abuse; which will deliver sterilized articles at no appreciable in- ,20 1

l will be understood that the selection of this embodiment is made simply to illustrate the invention and not to .limit it. Thus, the apparatus herein selected to illustrate the invention is designed for operation on beverage glasses. It is il35 proposed to embody the invention in somewhat modified designs to accommodate other articles of tableware and the like, such as knives, forks, spoons, cups, saucers, plates, etc., or any other articles, such as instruments or the like, which40 may require sterilizing. Moreover, it will be understood also that various other changes in the design of numerous elements of the disclosed apparatus may be made without affecting the underlying inventive concepts as long as such modi- 45 fications are reasonably within the scope and purview of the invention as dened by the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, which form part of this application for Letters Patent and'50 in which the same reference character designates the same part in the several views,

Figure l` is a perspective view of a cabinet constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention. This embodiment of the in- .55

surfaces.

the line 5--5 of Fig. 2, showing the elevator carriage in its lowermost position;

Figure 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5 but showing the elevator carriage in its uppermost position;

Figure '7 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line I-'I of Fig. 2, showing the elevator carriage lowered after raising a rack on to the clips; and

Figure 8 is a perspective view of one of the racks. f

Referring now tothe drawings and first to Fig.

V1, the device contemplated by the present invention includes a cabinet I, preferably made in a size and of a shape to adapt it to be positioned on a soda fountain, bar or the like, or on a rear counter thereof, in full view of the prospective consumer. To this end thecabinet is best made of iinished metal, such as stainless steeLenameled sheet metal, glass or the like, and the cabinet is preferably designed to have an ornamental appearance. The cabinet includes an internal chamber defined by a oor 2, a ceiling 3, a back wall 4, Y

and side walls 5, 5. V'Ihese side walls of the chamber are internal partitions, each spaced from the outer side wall 6 of the cabinet, so that ahollow space 'I is' enclosed at the right and left hand sides of the cabinet structure, for a purpose hereinafter to, be explained.

The front wall of the cabinet is faced by a wall 8 which has upper and lower openings( In the embodiment illustrated, the lowerV opening, designated 9, is the admission opening, and the upper opening, designated I0, is the outlet or discharge opening. The admission opening is provided with a `closure in the form of a door II, hinged in any convenient manner on the front wall 8 above the opening 9, Vand the discharge vopening I0 is unprovided with any closure.

The cabinet is'provided with sterilizing means for articles of tableware or the like. In the illustrated embodiment this sterilizing means consists of a series of lamps I2 having the properties of emitting ultra-violet radiations, but of course other sterilizing devices might be used. rhese lamps are purchasable in the open market and in and of themselves are not a part of the present invention. They are arranged in the cabinet adjacent the ceiling and floor thereof. iently six lamps are used, three symmetrically and equidistantly spaced apart just above the floor of the cabinet, and three similarly positioned l just below the ceiling. The interior of the cabinet is preferably finished to provide highly reective The ceiling and floor are best provided with corrugated or iiuted reflective surfaces, so thatl rays from the adjacent lamps will be reflected and dispersed in all directions moreV or less equally throughout the cabinet chamber.

In the cabinet selected to illustrate the invention the admission opening 9 comprises about onethird the height of the whole cabinet chamber. The outlet opening I0 accounts for approximate- Conventhe slots I 'I.

ly another one-third of this height. The front wall 8, between the openings and permanently closed, accounts for the remaining one-third of the chamber height. Y

Articles of tableware, specifically beverage glasses in the illustration, are best handled through the cabinet and into it and out of it on racks or trays I3. I have shown a preferred type of tray in Fig. 8, and illustrated this tray in association with the cabinet in certain of the other gures. Each tray is capable of holding ve rows of four standard soda glasses each and is adapted by its size and proportions to fit into the cabinet through the admission opening 9 and to be removed from the cabinet through the outlet or discharge opening I0. The cabinet thus is capable of holding at one time three trays, containing, when each tray is fully loaded, a total of sixty beverage glasses.

Each tray comprises a large mesh wire bottom I4, side and back guard rails I5, and side handles I6,` bent inwardly for a reason which will be explained hereinafter. The front of each tray is left entirely open.

Each of the chamber side walls 5 is provided with a pairof spaced vertical slots II extending approximately throughout the height of the admission opening 9. An elevator carriage I8 is made of relatively heavy and widely spaced crossed wires or rods, two of which extend through the slots II at each side of the carriage, to penetrate the hollow space 'I between the inner and outer side walls of the cabinet. In this space the ends of the rods are connected to a triangular plate I9, to the apex at the upper end of which a exible link, in the form of a chain 2U, is connected. This chain is trained over pulleys 2i which change its direction from vertical to horizontal in the upper Zone of each hollow space 1, and the horizontal run of each chain issues from the cabinet through a small opening 22 in the front wall adjacent the chamber discharge opening I0. The projected end of each chain 2E) is connected to a bail or handle 23 which is pivoted in the closed part of the front wall 8 and extends therefrom upwardly along the front wall when in its closed position. When the handle 23 is pulled for'- wardly and downwardly from this position, the plates'are lifted and the attached elevator carriage I 8 rises from the bottom to the top of the slots I'I.

Inits lowermost position the elevator carriage I 8 is, as shown in Fig.' '7, in substantially the horizontal plane of the bottom of the admission opening il, so that when the door II is open and the elevator carriage is in this lowermost position, a rack loaded with beverage glasses or the like may be slid onto it by passing the same through the admission opening 9. To facilitate this sliding movement the front ends of the wires of which the carriage is made are conveniently downturned as shown at 24.

A pull on the bail or handle 23 will lift the elevator carriage and its tray to the upper end of Toward the end of this elevating movement the bottom of the tray snaps over each one of four spring clip supporting elements designated generally 25, and shown .in detail in Fig. 4. These clips are pivoted to the inside wall 5 of the chamber, in the hollow space 'I, and each of them comprises a supporting shoulder 26 spring pressed into the chamber by the leaf end of a coil spring or the like 21. Below the shoulder 26 and integral with it is a cam surface 28 which is engaged by the rising floor of the tray and is amassedV pushed outwardlyagainst the action of the spring untilthetray rises to the level of the shoulder 26, whereupon the action of the spring snaps the clip beneath theftray and supports the same independently of. the ,carriage I8, which may then be lowered vto the bottom of the slots I'I.

"If a second tray be then introduced into the now empty vlower one-third of the chamber and the elevating action repeated, trays will occupy the upper and intermediate' one-thirds of the chamber, 'the intermediate tray being supported on the clips and the upper tray being supported on the intermediate tray. A third tray may then be'introduced into the lower one-third of the chamber, but it will be obvious that this tray cannot be elevated until the upper tray is removed through the discharge opening I6. It is contemplated that glasses will be removed one by one through this discharge opening as the needs of customers require. When all the glasses have been removed from the upper tray, this tray is removedthrough the opening Ill, whereupon the bail or handle 23 will be operated to lift the lowermost tray to intermediate position, thus elevating another tray into uppermost position and freeing the space in the bottom one-third of the chamber to receive a new tray loaded with glasses or the like to be sterilized.

The inward inclination of each of the tray handles I6 is for the purpose of clearing the clips 25 when the tray is slid onto the elevator carriage through the admission opening 9.

A guard 29 of coarse mesh maybe provided in the upper zone of the chamber immediately below the upper series of lamps I2 to protect these lamps from damage during the acts of removing l place at the time or immediately after the time glasses or the tray through the discharge opening IU.

Itwill be recognized that there is a decided advantage in requiring the attendant to operate the cabinet in the manner which has been explained. I therefore provide the cabinet with means positively requiring that trays introduced through the opening 9fbe withdrawn through the opening I0, meanwhile moving upwardly through the chamber. This includes means making it necessary ior the attendant to elevate the lowermost tray beforel he can obtain access to the space occupied by it. To these ends I make the door II automatically self-latching when moved to closed position and I provide means preventing releaselof this latch until the lowermost rack is moved to intermediate position.

At each extreme side of the door I I I provide a keeper 30 for a bolt 3l which is slidably mounted l lever 32 is apertured freely to admit the chain 29 which may be pulled through the aperture without lifting the lever. When the upper end of the plate I9, however, reaches the lever, it lifts the lever oif of the stop pin 34 and lifts the bolt SI out of thekeeper 3B, so that therdoor II may be opened. The parts are proportioned, positioned and adjusted so that engagement of the plate i9 with the lever 32 for unlatching the door I l takes the4 lowermost tray becomes supported on the clips 25.

When the door I I swings to closed position, with ing surfaces 35 and 36 of the keeper and bolt respectively facilitate the latching action, so that subsequent pull on the central door knob 31 will be ineffective to open the door. The door can be opened only by an elevating motion of the carriage I8.

If the attendant will introduce a loaded tray through the admission opening 9 after the door IE has been opened in the manner explained, it will be obvious that the movement of the door to closed position will result in its becoming latched, so that access to this newly admitted tray cannot be had until it is moved upwardly in the chamber and occupies the uppermost position therein. This mechanism therefore insures not only that each tray admitted to the chamber through the admission opening will pass entirely through the cabinet chamber before being removed, but also that each article of tableware on a tray will remain in the cabinet long enough to be completely sterilized by the rays emanating from the several sets of bulbs I2. Thus, immediately upon the entry of a tray into the cabinet the lower bulbs I2 begin to sterilize the outside walls and outside bottoms o-f the glasses. When subsequently lifted to intermediate position the inside walls and inside bottoms of the glasses begin to come into the range of greater effectiveness of the upper set of bulbs, and sterilization of both inside and outside of the glasses takes place. When the tray in question is iinally moved to uppermost position the rims of the glasses are subjected to the fullest and most intense sterilizing effect of the upper bulbs. With as many as sixty glasses in the chamber, each of them remains, even dur.- ing periods of abnormally heavy demands on the cabinet, long enough within the influence of the sterilizing emanations to become completely sterilized. In this connection it is to be pointed out that ordinary glass is comparatively opaque to ultra-violet rays, so that a glass interposed between another glass and the source of a ray very largely shields that other glass from the sterilizing effects of the ray. However, in the cabinet which is the subject of the present invention, it will be observed that as glasses are` removed from the full uppermost tray, they must be taken first from whatmay be considered the front row of glasses, i. e., those glasses which appear in Fig. l. Removal of these glasses unshields the glasses immediately beneath them, so that the front row glasses of the intermediate tray become directly exposed to the upper lamps before the other rows of glasses in that tray. Therefore, although these front row glasses are the iii-st to be removed from the chamber when the tray becomes moved to uppermost position, and are therefore positioned immediately below the upper lamps a relatively short time, these glasses will by the time they reach the uppermost tray position have been subjected to the direct, unimpeded rays from the upper lamps throughout a relatively long period while the tray bearing them was in the intermediate position and no glasses were directly above them. In this way each glass becomes completely sterilized as it traverses the chamber.

I have explained that latching means is providedfor the door I I to make certain that a tray or an article of tableware properly admitted to the chamber will be advanced through it to the dischargeV opening and not withdrawn throughV the admission opening. To make certain that this door is properly moved to latched position,

7 5,` theilever 32 resting on the pinSlI, beveled Vengag-v I iind it convenient to make energization of the ing action of the whole apparatus, dependent on the door being latched. This I regard as a feature of especial value, because unless this door becomes latched the attendant might be inclined to remove a glass from the admission opening 9. The attendant will be disinclined to practice such removal of glasses if to do so would be to prevent sterilization, and he will entirely refrain from such practice if the prospective consumer can be clearly apprised when sterilizing action is and when it is not taking place.

In this connection it will be remembered that the sterilizing cabinet is designed and intended to impress the prospective consumer with the fact that his beverage glass or the like is being sterilized. To make that fact quite plain I find it convenient to employ a sensible signalling means operable in response to energization of the lamps.

A specific embodiment of means for effecting the objects outlined in the two preceding paragraphs will now be explained.

In Fig.,6 the reference numeral 40 designates a switch in the circuit of the lamp I2 which is there shown open, andwhich becomes closed by movement of the door II to closed position, as shown in Fig. 5. A stem 4I, operable by engagement of one of the keepers 3i), or by any other projection from the door, is the actuating element of the switch, and this stem is of course spring pressed to open circuit position.

In Fig. l, the reference numeral 42 designates an electrically illuminated display sign, conveniently mounted on the top front of the cabinet. The circuit to this sign is conveniently placed in series with the circuit through the switch 40, or at any rate the sign circuit is arranged to be controlled also by the switch 40, so that the sign will be illuminated only when the bulbs I2 are energized. This sign will display text to the effect that Your glass is now being sterilized. If preferred, ofcourse, other text may be adopted. For example, the sign may explain rather in detail that when it is illuminated sterilization is proceeding within the cabinet and when it is not illuminated the contents of the cabinet are not being sterilized. Again, the text may invite the customer to see that his glass or the like is sterilized in the cabinet before it is set before him, and of course many other variations in the message will suggest themselves.

The ultra-violet lamps which I have used with success are, as I have stated, a standard type of bulb. They are conveniently socketed in the opposite side walls 5. Access to the lower set of bulbs is had by elevating the carriage I8, while the top of the cabinet may be raised to give access to the upper set. The top of the cabinet may be hingedly mounted on therupper rear wall 4, as shown atr43.

These bulbs are energized by currents having pressures of the order of 3,000 volts, and the necessary transformer 44, safety switch 45,v and such other incidental apparatus as may be convenient to use or required by local or underwriters regulations, may be housed in an enclosure 46 Y on the top of the cabinet, behind the sign 42. The wiring of the circuits presents no diculty and is deemed therefore to require no explanation, it being sucient to state that connections from a standard supply plug 41 to the switch 4I), the lamps, sign, etc., are housed within the hollow wall spaces I.

The illustrated embodiment of the invention is hand-operated, accommodates three trays, moves lamps I2, and consequently of course the sterilizthese trays upwardly, and is of comparatively small size. I contemplate embodying this same invention in other cabinet structures. These may diifer from that which I have illustrated in that the elevator mechanism may be power operated, more trays may be accommodated, the trays may be moved downwardly or laterally, and the cabinets may be made in larger dimensions and of consequently greater capacity. I have already referred to the fact that embodiments intended to handle articles other than beverage glasses will be appropriately designed for the special purpose intended. All these modifications, however, will incorporate the inventive features of the structure hereinabove explained and all of them are therefore deemed to be Within the scope and purview of the appended claims.r As an example of such modiiication, certain of the walls of the cabinet may be made of glass or other transparent material. If such material be employed for the rear wall, the cabinet may be mounted on the bar with its front wall and opening facing the attendant, and the customer will be able plainly to see the glasses or the like being sterilized in the cabinet chamber.

What I claim is:

1. A cabinet for articles of tableware or the like comprising a chamber having a pair of vertically spaced openings including an admission opening below and a discharge opening above, a plurality of article-supporting trays in the cabinet including a tray opposite each opening, means for sterilizing articles on said trays, a support in the cabinet for the tray opposite the admission opening, other supporting means in the cabinet for a tray which supports the tray opposite the discharge opening. and means operable only on removal from the cabinet of the tray opposite the discharge opening for moving the tray opposite the admission opening from its support on to said other supporting means.

2. In a sterilizing and storage cabinet for articles of tableware or the like, a vertical stack of separate trays in the cabinet for supporting articles to be sterilized, means for sterilizing articles on the trays in the cabinet, means in the bottom of the cabinet for supporting the bottommost tray, other means mounted in the cabinet for supporting the lowermost of the rest of the trays, and means for elevating the means supporting the bottommost tray to cause said tray to become supported by said other means.

3. In a sterilizing and storage cabinet for articles of tableware or the like, a vertical stack of separatetrays in the cabinet for supporting articles to be sterilized, means for sterilizing articles on the trays in the cabinet, a carriage in the bottom of the cabinet for supporting the bottommost tray, spring clips projecting from the cabinet walls for supportingV the lowermost of the rest of the trays, and means for elevating the carriage to cause the bottommost tray to push upwardly and displace the lowermost of the rest of the trays from said spring clips and become supported itself on said clips.

4. In a sterilizing and storage cabinet for articles of tableware or the like, a verticalstack of separate trays in the cabinet for supporting articles to be sterilized, means for sterilizing articles on the trays in cabinet, a carriage in the bottom of the cabinet for supporting the bottommost tray, other supporting means in the cabinet for the lowermost of the rest of the trays, and handle means operable from Without the cabinet for elevating the carriageV and thereby lifting the leo bottommost tray onto said other supporting means.

45. In a sterilizing and storage cabinet for articles of'tableware or the like, a box-like receptacle comprising a pair of hollow vertical side walls spaced apart anddening a single, vertical,

` straight line pathway between them, support iingers yieldably projecting from said walls into the receptacle above the bottom of said pathway, a

tray for said articles in the receptacle below said ng'ers, means in the hollow walls for elevating saidftray on to the ngers, and means in the vreceptacle for sterilizing articles on the tray.

jecting from said walls into the chamber above the bottom thereof, a tray for said articles in the chamber below said ngers, an elevator carriage beneath said tray, a handle operable from without the chamber, linkage means within the hollow walls connecting the handle with the carriage whereby operation of the handle elevates the carriage and lifts the tray on the ngers, and means in the chamber for sterilizing articles on the tray.

'7. A cabinet for articles of tableware or the like comprising wall means forming a chamber, means for moving said articles along a path within the chamber, and a pair of sourcesv of sterilizing rays positioned within the chamber and beyond the opposite ends of said path so as to emit rays along said path whereby the articles in the chamber have their opposite surfaces irradiated by said sources, said wall means having an entrance opening and a discharge opening spaced apart along d said path and parallel therewith through which the articles may be introduced `into and withdrawn from said path.

8. A cabinet for articles of tableware or the like comprisinga chamber having an entrance opening and a discharge opening spaced apart in the same wall of the cabinet, means for moving said articles within the chamber from a point adjacent Athe entrance opening to a point adjacent the discharge opening along a path parallel to said wall of the cabinet, and a pair of sources of sterilizing rays positioned within the chamber and beyond the opposite ends of said path so as to emit rays along said path, whereby the articles in the chamber have their opposite surfaces irradiated by said sources.

9. A cabinet for articles of tableware or the like comprising a box-like chamber having a vertical wall provided with an entrance opening and a discharge opening spaced vertically apart, means for moving said articles along a vertical path within the chamber from a point opposite the entrance opening to a point opposite the discharge opening, and a pair of sources of sterilizing rays positioned within the chamber and vsubstantially in the line of said path beyond the like comprising a box-like chamber having a Y vertical wall provided with an entrance opening and a discharge opening spaced vertically apart,

means for moving said articles along a vertical path within the chamber from a point opposite the entrance opening to a point opposite the vdischarge opening, reflecting ceiling and oor l walls for the chamber disposed across the line of the path and respectively beyondv the named l'p`oi1"its,`andfa pair of sources of sterilizing rays positioned respectively'adjacent, the ceiling and oor walls and'beyond the named pointswhereby rays from l.said sources are directed oppositely along thepath from beyond the ends thereof and the. opposite surfaces of articles infthe path may Y be sterilized.

V11. A cabinetfor sterilizing articles of'tableware or the like by means of'radiationscomprising a chamber having Van entrance'opening and a discharge opening spaced apart, a'plurality ofraytransmitting supports in the chamber for said articles, one of said supports being 'adjacent the 'discharge opening, a source of sterilizing radiations positioned adjacent the discharge opening so as toernit radiations 'directly on to the articles on the'fnamfed support, 'and Said othersupports including one positioned inthe line `of said radiations and beyond the named support, whereby said radiations will passthr'ough thefirst named support whenv an article is removedv therefrom and "impinge directlyon an article on `the second named support.

l2. Acabinet for sterilizing `articles of table-1v wareor theA like by means oi radiations comprising a chamber havin'gan entrance opening and a discharge opening spaced apart, a plurality .of ray-transmitting'supports in thechamber for said articles, means for'moving said supports* from afpoint in the chamber adjacent the entrance 'opening to a point adjacent the discharge opening, a source of ksterilizing radiationsk position'ed adjacent the Ydischarge opening so as to emit radiations directly on tothe articles on the supports nearestthe discharge opening, and said othersupports including one positioned inthe 4line of said radiations and beyond the last named support, whereby said radiations will pass through the support nearestthe discharge open-"40 ing when an article is removed therefrom and imvpinge directly onV an article on the next'adjacent of said other supports.

13. A cabinet for' sterilizing articles of tableware or'the like by means of radiations compris-f1' ing a chamber having a wall provided with a solid portionandy a discharge opening, a plurality of ray-transmitting supports in the chamber', each adapted to hold a' plurality of said articles, one of` the supports being adjacent the discharge 4openingwhereby articles may be removed from the support through the opening and another of the supports being positioned in the chamber adjacent the first named support and behind the soliddportion of the wall whereby articles cannotv be removed from said other support while in said lOf tion, a plurality of ray-transmitting supports in Y cent the discharge opening whereby articles may be removed from the support through the opening, .another of the. supports being positioned in the chamber adjacent the entrance opening, and 575 still another of the supports being positioned in the chamber adjacent the rst named'support and behind the solid portion of the wall whereby articles cannot be removed from it while in said position, a source of sterilizing radiations positioned adjacent the discharge opening so as to emit radiations directly along lines intersecting al1 of said supports whereby said radiations will pass through the support adjacent the discharge opening when an article is removed therefrom and impinge directly on an article on the support behind the solid portion of the wall, and means operable on removal of the rst named support from its position adjacent the discharge opening to move the third named support to a position adjacent the discharge opening.

15. A cabinet for articles of tablewear or the like comprising a chamber, a source of sterilizing radiations in the chamber, means for moving progressively each of a plurality of sets of articles to be sterilized from an initial position in the chamber relatively remote fromvsaid source to a nal position in the chamber relatively close to said source, whereby one set of articles is positioned in a nalzone of relatively high sterilizing intensity while another set of articles is positioned in a prior zone of relatively low sterilizing intensity, said chamber having a discharge opening for the articles of the set in the nal zone whereby those articles are available for removal from the cabinet, and the articles of each set being arranged so that removal of any of them automatically exposes an article of a prior set to radiations of increased sterilizing intensity.

16. A cabinet for articles of tableware'or the like comprising a chamber having an entrance opening anda discharge opening spaced apart, means for moving said articles within the chamber in a single straight line path Vfrom a point adjacent the entrance opening toa point adjacent the dischai ge opening, a source of sterilizing radiations positioned across an end of said path, and a wall of the chamber obstructing said path adjacent the discharge opening, whereby said articles can be withdrawn from the cabinet only by movement through said discharge opening at an angle to said path.

17. A cabinet for articles of tableware orthe like comprising a chamber having an entrance opening and a discharge opening spaced apart, a plurality of supports, each support being adapted to conain a plurality of Ysaid articles, means for moving said supports within the chamber in a single straight line path from a point adjacent the en rance opening to a point adjacent the discharge opening, a source of sterilizing radiations positioned across an end Yof said path, and a wall of the chamber obstructing said mitting opening, a door for the admitting opening, means operable automatically on movement of the door to closed position to latch the door and prevent 'removalof the tray through the admitting opening, releasing means for said latch operable solely on movement of the tray to an mitting opening to clear said opening for admis'- sion of a second tray, means for moving the rst tray to said intermediate position, means for sterilizing articles on the trays while within the l chamber, and means preventing removal of the tray while in the intermediate position.

, 19. A cabinet for articles of tableware or the like comprising a chamber having a tray-admitting opening and a tray-dicharging opening spaced apart, a plurality of article-supporting trays each adapted to be inserted through the Y admitting opening and to be withdrawn through the discharging opening, said plurality including three trays adapted simultaneously to occupy positions in the chamber opposite said openings and intermediate them respectively, a door for the admitting opening, means operable automatically on movement of the door to closed position to latch the door and prevent removal through the admitting opening ofthe tray in the chamber opposite said opening, releasing means for said latch operable solely on movement of the last named tray to the intermediate position, means for moving said last named tray to the intermediate position and causing said tray during said movement to push the tray in the intermediate position into a position opposite the discharging opening, means for sterilizing articles on the trays within the chamber, and means preventing removal from the chamber of a tray in the intermediate position.

20.,A cabinet for articles of tableware or the like comprising a chamber having a pair of vertically spaced openings including an admission opening below and a discharge opening above, three article-supporting trays in the cabinet, consisting of a tray opposite each opening and a tray intermediate the openings, means for sterilizing articles on said trays, a support in the cabinet for the tray opposite the admission opening, other supporting means in the cabinet for the tray in the intermediate position, and means operable only on removal from the cabinet of the tray opposite the discharge opening for lifting the support for the tray opposite the admission opening to raise said tray, engage the same with the tray in the intermediate position and lift said trays respectively onto said other supporting means and into a position opposite the discharge opening.

21. A cabinet for sterilizing beverage glasses comprising a chamber, a source of sterilizing radiations in the upper part of the chamber arranged to direct the greater part of its radiations downwardly, means for mounting glasses upright in the chamber below said source and for moving them vertically from a prior position in the chamber relatively remote from said source to a nal position in the chamber relatively close to said source, whereby said glasses pass from a prior zone of relatively low sterilizing intensity to a nal zone of relatively high sterilizing intensity, and means for stopping the movement of the glasses in said nal Zone, said chamber having a discharge opening for the glasses adjacent said nal zone whereby the glasses in said nal zone are available for removal from the cabinet.

v22. A cabinet for sterilizing beverage glasses comprising a chamber providing a substantially straight-line pathway, a source of sterilizing radiations in an end of the chamber beyond the adjacent end of said pathway arranged to direct the greater part of its radiations along the pathway, means for mounting glasses in the pathway with the interiors of said glasses facing said source and relatively remote therefrom and for moving said glasses rectilinearly along said pathway to a nal position with their interiors facing said source and relatively close thereto, whereby said glasses pass from a prior Zone of relatively low sterilizing intensity to a nal zone of relatively high sterilizing intensity, and means for stopping the movement of the glasses in said nal zone, said chamber having a discharge opening for the glasses adjacent said nal zone whereby the glasses in said final zone are available for removal from the cabinet.

MILTON SELIG.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION. Patent No., 2,ll4.6,688. Y February 7, 1959 MILTON sELIG.

It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page LL, second column, line TO, claim il., before the word "cabinet" insert the; page 5, first column, line 20, claim 6, for "thereof read of said pathway.; line 26, same claim, after "on" Ainsert to; page 6, first column, line l?, claim l5, for

"tablewear" read tableware; line 67, claim 18, for "supportng" read supporting; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this lhth day of March, A.D. 1959.

Henry Van Arsdale (Seal) l Acting Commissioner of Patents 

